‘Rust’ director “understands” why people might find it unsettling to watch Alec Baldwin Western after fatal set shooting

Rust Director Joel Souza has said he “understands” if viewers find it unsettling to watch the Alec Baldwin-led Western, following the fatal on-set shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

In October 2021, a prop gun held by Baldwin fired a live bullet that killed Hutchins and seriously injured Souza. Baldwin was charged with involuntary manslaughter before a judge dismissed the case on July 12.

Three years after the incident, Rust was finally unveiled to the public on Wednesday (November 20). The film received a warm reception from a supportive crowd at Poland’s Camerimage Film Festival.

In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Souza opened up about returning to the set a year and a half after the accident to complete the project. He also touched on how audiences might find it difficult to see the characters wielding guns.

“I understand. It’s an interesting question,” he said. “You know, it’s a Western and it’s reflective of life in the old West and what we’ve come to expect of Westerns. But I understand that it’s now a strange thing for people, and it’ll be interesting to see how people react to that aspect.”

Asked how the cast and crew felt about returning to production and working with fake guns, Souza replied: “I don’t know if you’ve ever picked up a gun, but I have in my past. I didn’t grow up with them. It’s very daunting to me to even hold something like that in my hand.

“The second time around, when we came back to production, we had this amazing armorer. We worked only with fake guns and everything was so profoundly inert. They were basically paperweights, incapable of doing anything. But our armorer still relentlessly and meticulously treated everything like it was real — because that’s how you’re safe and that’s how it should be done.

“But even so, it was a large moment for everyone in the beginning. And then, at a certain point, you sort of get into the rhythm of filmmaking. These are actors and it starts taking on a normalcy for them. But I can’t imagine it wasn’t big for anybody at the start.”

When asked if he spoke to Alec Baldwin about picking up a gun again, Souza said: “I’m sure we had conversations about it. I can’t remember the substance of them. But I have zero doubt that it was an unnerving thing for him to do and a large moment for him.”

Back in August, Souza told Vanity Fair that getting through the second shoot was “tough”, before touching on his relationship with Baldwin.

“We got through it. I got the performance I wanted. We’re not friends. We’re not enemies. There’s no relationship.”

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